Should Draco have been saved in DH?

In DH pt 2, Harry goes back into the burning room of requirement to save Draco Malfoy's life, despite all that Draco has said and done to him. My question is this, should Harry have risked his own life to save Draco's? Why or why not? And what would you have done if you were Harry?

Last edited by Hes; July 5th, 2012 at 9:08 am.
Reason: space between sentences

Draco was different in DH. Harry had already seen what pressure he was under so I think he had a bit of pity for him. While Harry risked his life, I think he thought that he had a good chance to make it, given that he was a good flyer.

Whether I'd have attempted to save him would depend on how likely I thought I could make it out.

I think Harry started to see Draco differently. Draco didn't identify him in the mansion and in HBP Harry witnessed his struggles and almost killed him.

For me personally, I would probably always try to save a person if it is my power to do so regardless of what they have done to me. I would never make a choice to let someone die. I would let courts decide their fate.

As others have already said throughout Deathly Hallows Draco had begun to atone for his actions. He didn't identify Harry in Malfoy Manor and he didn't take a particularly active role in the Battle Of Hogwarts, simply trying to survive. I also think Harry had realised that Draco's actions in HBP and DH were simply due to his desperation and his desire to protect himself and his family, not because he believed in Voldemort. I think Harry was right in trying to save Draco despite the risk to himself .

Personally I'd try to save him if I could but probably wouldn't have been brave enough to risk my own life as Harry did.

Harry, as the hero, needs to be doing majorly heroic and self-sacrificial stuff, risking his own neck, in the final book. Saving his old nemesis Draco Malfoy is an obvious thing for the hero to do.

And it would be really crass to kill off a major character like Draco (major in the sense he has appeared consistently throughout the series) in that particular way. Crabbe is entirely expendable, as a minor character. He well illustrates the point that he who plays with fire ends up, erm, burnt.

I am relieved that JKR doesn't have all her villains meet just ends -- that would be way too contrived.

Also, Draco is not an out-and-out villain. He is not a nice boy, and has done some awful things, he is all about self-preservation in true Malfoy fashion, but he is not a cardboard cut-out villain either. He is presented in a three-dimensional way, he is human and believable.

So, yes, I'm very glad that Harry saved Draco. Firstly, for the sake of Harry's characterisation! It makes me think highly of Harry. Secondly, because while I don't like Draco's behaviour, I enjoy him as a character.

I don't think Harry would have been Harry if he had left Draco to die in the Room of Requirement. Harry does have a saving people thing and even though he didn't like Draco he still couldn't bring himself to just leave him there to burn. Harry has a temper and is rather moody at times but he's not so callously vindictive as to let Draco die simply because he doesn't like him.

If I were in the same position I imagine I would try to save the person. If I didn't even try I would suffer the rest of my life knowing I could have done something but instead I just left that person there to die. For my own sake I think I'd try.

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Draco is a really interesting character. In books 4 and 5 (and before), he's very pro-Voldemort. He has these expectations of what life would be like under Voldemort's reign. But starting in book 6, once he's given his task, and once he's spent time around Voldemort, you can see his expectations give in to reality. He sees that life under Voldemort would be almost as miserable for him as it would for anyone else. Despite all his bluster and all his fake confidence, he's not suited for the Death Eaters. He wants a good life - like the one he grew up in - where he's rich, important, and powerful. But he's not a killer. He wouldn't have killed Dumbledore, and anything after that was done out of fear for his and his family's safety.

Harry, I think, realized this. His strength of character would not allow him to let someone other than a Death Eater die. And Malfoy, for all his flaws, is not a Death Eater.

Should Harry have saved him? Yes, he should have. Saving him is in Harry's nature. It's in his character. To have let him die would have flown in the face of everything we know about Harry.

Would I have saved him? I don't know that I would have. At least not in that situation.

I think JK Rowling is illustrating by saving Draco that there are times in life that we have to be around people we detest and who are not anything like us, but that doesn't mean that they don't have some intrinsic worth to others (with the exception of Lord Voldemort, in my opinion). Harry, being a brave gryffindor, and also being a hero (the saving others thing) didn't even have to think about saving Draco - he just reacted to the circumstances. Like several others mentioned, I think, starting with HPB, Harry started seeing a different side of Draco (he was a victim and was under immense pressure to attain a task that Voldemort knew he could not acheive). After Snape had killed Dumbledore in front of Harry, Harry's only thoughts were his hatred for Snape as a murderer - Harry even mentioned to someone that Draco was just along for the ride. He didn't hold Draco responsible for what happened on the tower.

Harry risking his neck to save Draco was a foreshadowing of Harry walking into the woods to save everyone - if he can save and protect, he will. Keep in mind also that even in the final showdown, he was trying to save even Voldemort: "I have seen what you will become. Try for some remorse." Remorse, honestly seeking forgiveness for the evil he had done, was the only chance that Voldemort had of not spending an eternity of sheer horror (and at that point there were no horcruxes left, so Voldy would in time die if he could not create more, which is doubtful). Even for Voldemort, Harry took the opportunity to offer a rescue.

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As others have already said throughout Deathly Hallows Draco had begun to atone for his actions. He didn't identify Harry in Malfoy Manor and he didn't take a particularly active role in the Battle Of Hogwarts, simply trying to survive. I also think Harry had realised that Draco's actions in HBP and DH were simply due to his desperation and his desire to protect himself and his family, not because he believed in Voldemort. I think Harry was right in trying to save Draco despite the risk to himself .

And let's not forget that just moments before Draco had tried hard to stop Crabbe and Goyle from killing Harry. For details, look at the last 6 pages or so of chapter 31.

And let's not forget that just moments before Draco had tried hard to stop Crabbe and Goyle from killing Harry. For details, look at the last 6 pages or so of chapter 31.

Well I have to ask about that. Was it a true attempt to save Harry's life if Draco was only trying to save Harry's life so his neck wasn't put on the chopping block? It sure seemed like that was what Draco was after with his,
“STOP!” Malfoy shouted at Crabbe, his voice echoing through the enormous
room. “The Dark Lord wants him alive—“ JK Rowling, Deathly Hallows.

I don't think Ron was all that impressed by his attempt to 'save' Harry either. Somehow I'm never that impressed by Draco dipping his toe into the pool of moral strength, he always seems to pull it right out again.

Somehow I'm never that impressed by Draco dipping his toe into the pool of moral strength, he always seems to pull it right out again.

Draco's moral weaknesses are irrelevant to Harry saving him though, which is what this thread is about.

Speaking for myself, I wouldn't leave my worst enemy to die in a fire. If I had the quick thinking and courage of Harry, I would have tried to save Draco too.

Ron reaction is very understandable -- besides, it makes me laugh "If we die for them, I'll kill you, Harry!" -- but Harry, as the hero, acts admirably in his successful attempts to rescue a boy he has no reason to care about.

Of course Harry had to save Draco. sometimes heroes do things that don't always make sense to others. But, I think it wouldn't be right if Harry just flew out of the ROR and left Draco, Crabbe and Goyle behind. Doesn't matter what they did to him in the past, what matters is now, Harry could no more leave three people to die in a fire than flying to the moon on a broom. Unfortunately, he couldn't save Crabbe.
As for me, I think I would save them, because it is the right thing to do.

Harry is Harry. I can't remember which of the anti-trio died, but Harry would have saved him, too, if he was able. I believe Harry saw a different Draco after (and during) the events of HBP. Remember in the Malfoy Manor chapter of DH Draco does not reveal Harry.

It would be hard for me to want to save Draco, but I also would not want to see him die because he is a living person. Would I risk my life to save him? I don't know and I wouldn't know unless I'm in that situation.

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I don't think it's necessarily a "hero" thing or a "saving people" thing; Harry is essentially a good person and it would sit wrongly with him to allow someone to die without lifting a finger to help them, and have to live with that guilt afterwards.

That in itself is not (I hope) an uncommon human virtue. However, I'm not sure that so many people would have the courage to actually go back and attempt the rescue if the moment came - I certainly couldn't answer that even for myself.

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Draco's moral weaknesses are irrelevant to Harry saving him though, which is what this thread is about.

Speaking for myself, I wouldn't leave my worst enemy to die in a fire. If I had the quick thinking and courage of Harry, I would have tried to save Draco too.

Ron reaction is very understandable -- besides, it makes me laugh "If we die for them, I'll kill you, Harry!" -- but Harry, as the hero, acts admirably in his successful attempts to rescue a boy he has no reason to care about.

Which is what being a true hero is all about.

Of course Harry would save Draco's life if he could, that goes without saying. Was Draco worth the effort is another question. But that question is moot as far as Harry is concerned, he leaves judging whether someone is worthy of living or not to the Death Eaters and people like Draco. Luckily for Draco, Harry's nothing like him.